Flat crystals showing uniform parameters over the entire surface, including - most valuably - excellent optical properties

25-May-2020

For the first time, monolayers of transition metal dichalcogenides with excellent optical properties were grown. A team of physicists from the University of Warsaw managed to overcome the technical difficulties faced by industry and scientists from around the world, namely the very limited size, ...

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Method represents a simple, inexpensive and scalable approach to produce multi-functional graphene infused synthetic opals

20-May-2020

Scientists have taken inspiration from the biomimicry of butterfly wings and peacock feathers to develop an innovative opal-like material that could be the cornerstone of next generation smart sensors. An international team of scientists, led by the Universities of Surrey and Sussex, has ...

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12-May-2020

Scientists have successfully developed a new technique to reliably grow crystals of organic soluble molecules from nanoscale droplets, unlocking the potential of accelerated new drug development. Chemistry experts from Newcastle and Durham universities, working in collaboration with SPT Labtech, ...

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12-Feb-2020

High magnetic fields have a potential to modify the microscopic arrangement of magnetic moments because they overcome interactions existing in zero field. Usually, high fields exceeding a certain critical value force the moments to align in the same direction as the field leading to ferromagnetic ...

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29-Oct-2019

Verner Håkonsen works with cubes so tiny that nearly 5 billion of them could fit on a pinhead. He cooks up the cubes in the Norwegian University of Science and Technology's (NTNU) NanoLab, in a weird-looking glass flask with three necks on the top using a mixture of chemicals and special ...

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16-Oct-2019

High-energy materials that can store very large amounts of chemical energy and release it when required are being sought for long-haul space travel worldwide. Nitrogen compounds in which several nitrogen atoms are linked by single bonds possess this ability. These compounds are difficult to ...

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13-Sep-2019

Some creatures, such as chameleons and neon tetra fish, can alter their colors to camouflage themselves, attract a mate or intimidate predators. Scientists have tried to replicate these abilities to make artificial "smart skins," but so far the materials haven't been robust. Now, researchers ...

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Heterostructure crystals could light the way to optical circuits

09-Aug-2019

It may be possible to reach new levels of miniaturization, speed, and data processing with optical quantum computers, which use light to carry information. For this, we need materials that can absorb and transmit photons. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, Chinese scientists have introduced a new ...

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X-ray examination shows surprising coexistence of liquid and crystalline form

14-May-2019

Very narrow gaps make liquids crystallise partially. X-ray investigations at DESY show that in gaps just a few molecule diameters wide both, liquid and crystal properties of a material can exist at the same time. The observation of this coexistence is important for all liquids in very small ...

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Researchers modify magnetic behavior of exotic materials

26-Apr-2019

People are not the only ones to be occasionally frustrated. Some crystals also show frustrations. They do so whenever their elementary magnets, the magnetic spins, cannot align properly. Cesium copper chloride (Cs2CuCl4) – or CCC for short – is a prime example of frustrated materials. In this ...

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